Solver Table Step by Step Tutorial

Getting started - setup

In order to create a solver table, firstly we need to install both the Solver add-in and the Solver Table add-in in Excel.
Once you have both the add-ins in excel, you will be able to view the Solver feature under the Data tab in Excel. You will
also find a new tab called Solver Table after the View Tab on the top as shown in the snapshot below.

To install the Solver Table add-in, you need to download the Solvertable.xla or the Solvertable.xlam (see software.pdf
on Canvas for details.) The instructions for installation accompany the download and are self-explanatory.

Let us now look at how to create Solver Tables using the Shoes example, from Assignment 1. Firstly, we need to create
the model to maximize profit with the appropriate decision variables, intermediate variables (if needed) and constraints.
The model could look as pictured below. You also need to have the model set up in Solver, before you can proceed with
sensitivity analysis using SolverTable.

Following the examples in the lecture slides, we will first create a SolverTable that analyzes the effects of the profit
contribution of casual shoes on the different outputs. In the SolverTable tab select Run SolverTable. A prompt will pop
up asking you if the model is set up in Solver, select yes (assuming the model is set up.).

Creating a oneway solver table

Since we are only varying one parameter ( profit contribution for casual shoes), we select to create a One-way solver
table. The Solver table function would prompt you to choose a One-way table or a Two-way table as shown below.
Select One-way Table.

Once you select One-way table, you will be prompted to enter/select the input value/cell that you want to be varied
and also the output variables/cells i.e. variables that you want to monitor. In this example, the input variable is the cell
that contains the profit contribution for casual shoes and the output variables (as chosen in the class notes) are the
Total Profit, Number of Casual Shoes and Number of Dressy Shoes. You can choose to enter any number of Output
variables. You can select multiple output variables by holding down the Ctrl key and selecting the cells wanted. The
input value can be varied using a regular step function or you can also directly enter the values that you want the input
variable to take. In this example, we vary the input value from 10 to 20 with a step size of 1. Below is a snapshot for this
example.

Once you enter all the required values, you need to click on OK to run the Solver. The Solver Table function will in turn
run the solver function for each of the different input values and produce the optimum maximum total profit for each
of the different input values. The output will look as follows:

Creating a two-way solver table

In order to create a solver table analyzes the effect of varying two parameters, we again click on the SolverTable tab and
click on Run Solver Table. Select yes when asked if you have Solver set up (assuming you do.)

The Solver table function will prompt you to choose a One-way table or a Two-way table as shown below. Select
Two-way Table.

Per the class handout, we will create a two-way table that analyzes the effect of varying the profit contribution for both
casual shoes and dressy shoes. To create a two-way solver table, Similar to the one-way table, you will now need to
enter two Input Variables and specify how you would like them to vary. You also need to specify the Output variable that
you would want to track. In this example, you need to select profit contribution for casual shoes and dressy shoes as
the input variables and total profit and the decision variables as the output. A snapshot of the selected input variables
and the output variable is below.

Then run the solver table function by clicking OK. The resulting output would look as follows, a table for each of the
outputs is created: